I’m not so sure I like my friends any more. I used to like them-to be honest. We’d have lunch, talk on the phone or exchange emails, and they all seemed normal enough. But then came Face Book, and I was introduced to a sad fact: many of my friends have dark sides that they had kept from me.
Today my friends show off the more unpleasant aspects of their personalities via FaceBook. No longer hidden, they’re thrown in my face like TV commercials -unavoidable and endless advertisements for the worst of their personalities.
Take Fred. If you were to have lunch with him, you’d find him warm, and self-effacing（謙遜的）.Read his FaceBook and you’ll realize he’s an unbearable, food-obsessed boring man. He’d pause to have a cup of coffee on his way to save a drowning man-and then write about it.
Take Andy. You won’t find a smarter CEO anywhere, but now he’s a CEO without a company to run. So he plays Mafia Wars on FaceBook. He’s doing well-level 731. Thanks to FaceBook, I know he’s playing about 18 hours a day. Andy, you’ve run four companies-and this is how you spend your downtime? What happned to golf?What happened to getting another job?
Take Liz. She is positive that the flu vaccine will kill us all and that we should avoid it. And then comes Chris who likes to post at least 20 times a day on every website he can find, so I get to read his thoughts twice, once on FaceBook and once on Twitter.
In real life, I don’t see these sides of people. Face to face, my friends show me their best. They’re nice, smart people. But face to FaceBook, my friends is like a blind date which goes horribly wrong.
I’m left with a dilemma. Who is my real friend?Is it the Liz I have lunch with or the anti-vaccine madman on FaceBook? Is it the Fred I can grab a sandwich with or the Fred who weeps if he’s at a party and the wine isn’t up to his standard?
小題1: Who is opposed to the flu vaccine in the text?

A．Fred

B．Andy

C．Liz

D．Chris

小題2:What’s Andy probably busy in doing now?

A．He’s running his company

B．He’s playing golf all day

C．He’s looking for another job

D．He’s playing computer games

小題3:According to the text, FaceBook tends to _______.

A．present another side of people

B．offer some foods for free

C．show endless advertisements

D．get you to more parties

小題4:The text is developed mainly by _____.

A．giving examples	B．following the time order
C．listing figures	D．raising questions

Loren Gladstone of Toronto is 58, but thinking over how to bequeath (遺贈) his digital property(財產(chǎn)). Doing the paperwork after his parents' death was a challenge. “When my time comes, I wonder if my children will even know what paper is，” he says. As a software developer, his virtual property is both valuable and vital to his business. That reflects a problem. Online lives have increasing economic and emotional value. But testamentary (遺囑) laws offer confusing and incomplete ways of bequeathing and inheriting (繼承) them.
Digital property may include software, websites, downloaded content, online gaming identities, social-media accounts and even e-mails. In Britain alone holdings of digital music may be worth over ￡9 billion ($14 billion). A fifth of respondents to a Chinese local-newspaper survey said they had over 5，000 yuan($790) of digital property. And value does not lie only in money.“Anyone with kids under 14 years old probably has two prints of them and the rest are in online galleries，”says Nathan Lustig of Entrustet, a company that helps people manage digital property.
Service providers have different rules—and few state them clearly in their terms and conditions. Many give users a personal right to use an account, but nobody else, even after death. Facebook allows relatives to close an account or turn it into a memorial page. Gmail (run by Google) will provide copies of e-mails to an executor (遺囑執(zhí)行人). Music downloaded via iTunes is held under a license which can be abolished on death. Apple declined to comment on the record on this or other policies. All e-mail and data on its iCloud service are deleted on the death of the owner.
This has led to cases to court in America. In 2004 the family of Justin Ellsworth, an army man killed in Iraq, took Yahoo! to court in Michigan to get copies of his e-mails. This year, a court in Oregon ruled that another American mother whose son had died could use her dead son's password to enter his Facebook account for a short period. Now five American states have made laws giving executors control over the social-networking accounts of dead users.
But this raises the subject of privacy. Passing music on is one thing; not everyone may want their relatives to read their e-mails. Colin Pearson, a London-based lawyer, says access should come only with a clear provision in a will.
But laws, wills and password safes may be contrary to the providers' terms of service, especially when the executor is in one country and the data in another. Headaches for the living and lots of lovely work for lawyers.
小題1:Why does Loren begin to think over how to bequeath his digital property at the age of 58?

A．Because he is afraid his children don't know what paper is.

B．Because there's no complete law dealing with digital property.

C．Because his digital property is of great value and importance.

D．Because he is worried his children will be taken to court.

小題2:Which of the following can be inferred from the passage?

A．Digital property is assessed in terms of nothing except money.

B．No laws in America have been made to deal with digital property.

C．The relatives may read the e－mail of the dead without permission.

D．Lawyers can make money through cases about digital property.

小題3:Facebook, Google and Apple have a similar rule that ________．

A．users are offered accounts used by nobody else except users themselves

B．relatives of the dead may close an account or use it at their own will

C．the executor may enter the e－mail and read it by themselves at any time

D．the data downloaded by the dead will be copied and then deleted from net

小題4:Which of the following can best serve as the title of the passage?

A．Digital Information	B．Testamentary Laws
C．Deathless Data	D．Vital Property

Pretending to be happy can actually make you more miserable — especially if you’re a woman, according to a new study.
The research found that women suffered more than men when pretending to be happy. Psychologist Dr. Brent Scott, who led the study, said employers should take note because forcing workers to smile when dealing with the public can backfire. He said, “Smiling for the sake of smiling can lead to emotional exhaustion, and that’s bad for the organization.”
Dr. Scott said the research showed customer-service workers who “fake smile” throughout the day worsen their mood and then withdraw from work, so their productivity drops. He added, “Bosses may think that getting their staff to smile is good for the organization, but that’s not necessarily the case.” Dr. Scott, assistant professor of management at Michigan State University, analyzed a group of bus drivers during a two- week period.
The study is one of the first of its kind to examine emotional displays over a period of time and compare the different effect that has on men and women. His team examined the effects of surface acting — or fake smiling — compared to what was termed “deep acting”, or cultivating(培養(yǎng)) positive emotions by recalling pleasant memories.
Dr. Scott said, “Women are harmed more by surface acting, meaning their mood worsens even more than the men and they withdraw more from work. However, they are helped more by deep acting, which means their mood improves more.”
Although “deep acting” seems to improve mood in the short-term, Dr. Scott said it’s not a long-term solution to feeling unhappy.
He said, “You’re trying to cultivate positive emotions, but at the end of the day you may not feel like yourself anymore.”
小題1:What does the underlined word “backfire” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?

A．Have the opposite effect.	B．Lead to conflict.
C．Drive people mad.	D．Help a lot.

小題2:What can we learn from the passage?

A．Surface acting is good for organizations.

B．Men benefit more from deep acting than women.

C．Fake smiling causes more harm to women than men.

D．Recalling good memories is a long-term solution to feeling down.

小題3:The findings of the research might serve as a warning to _______.

A．employees

B．employers

C．researchers

D．customers.

小題4: What would be the best title for the passage?

A．Solution to feeling unhappy

B．How to cultivate positive emotions

C．How to improve workers’ productivity

D．Fake smiling makes you miserable

At one time it was the dream of many little girls to become a nurse. Today, however, America is facing its worst nurse shortage since World War I. Recently about 2,000,000 nurses are needed and 60 percent of all hospitals in the US have shortages, large enough to threaten the quality of care provided. The demand for nurses spreads widely throughout the nursing field.
What has become of these women in white? The answer lies in not one but several causes. One possibility is the fact that women have greater career options. In the past, women who chose to work outside the home had two basic choices: nursing or teaching. Today, more women than ever are in the workforce, but their options have greatly increased. There are women doctors, lawyers, firefighters and police officers. In fact, women today are found in nearly every field of work. Nursing has been left behind, as women move on to jobs with higher pay and greater status. A woman or man in the nursing field is often looked down upon as“merely a nurse”. Teachers many be also at fault. Many high school students are actually away from nursing, told by teachers that they are“too bright to be a nurse”.
Americans are living longer than ever and requiring more medical attention. In fact, the number of elderly patients has almost doubled in the past twenty years. Obviously a larger population requires more nurses. AIDS and other diseases have caused more and more people to need nursing care. Usually fatal (致命的) diseases mean long hospital stay, that is to say, more nurses are needed to care for these patients. It is estimated that the demand for nurses will be doubled the supply in the coming ten years.
小題1:What does the second paragraph mainly talk about?

A．How nurses have been looked down upon.

B．Why women have chosen many different jobs.

C．What has caused nurse shortage.

D．How teachers have influenced their students.

小題2:The Passage tells that high school teachers are at fault for      .

A．not mentioning the worst nurse shortage in the US

B．introducing jobs with higher pay and greater status to their students

C．not asking the government to raise the nurses’ payment

D．persuading the students not to be nurses

小題3:The author writes the Passage in order to        .

A．describe the unequal treatment of women in the US

B．warn people to pay more attention to the nursing problem

C．tell us women’s free choices of jobs today

D．call on women to choose different kinds of jobs

小題4:It can be inferred from the Passage that       .

A．high school students think themselves too bright to be nurses

B．women in the US have greater career choices than those in other countries

C．of all the hospitals in the world 60 percent more nurses are badly needed

D．nursing used to be a popular job among women

Turns out we aren’t good at walking and talking at the same time, according to a study of pedestrians （行人） on their cell phones．
Nearly one-third of pedestrians （29．8% ） were distracted （分散注意力） by their mobile  devices while crossing the street, say researchers of a study published online in the journal Injury Prevention．
Just as drivers who text, talk on cell phones, or adjust MP3 players increase their risk of losing control of their vehicles, pedestrians distracted by their conversations or their devices also put themselves at higher risk of getting into an accident．
During the summer of 2012, scientists in Seattle, Wash． , studied 1,102 pedestrians at 20 crossroads seeing the city * s highest number of pedestrian injuries over the past few years．
They watched how pedestrians crossed the street @ whether they looked both ways or obeyed the crossroad signal @ and also recorded how long it took pedestrians to do so．Distractions included listening to music with headphones, using a cell phone or earpiece to talk on a cell phone, text messaging, and talking with another person．
Overall, researchers found the most common distraction among pedestrians was listening to music （11．2%）, followed by text messaging （7．3%）, and using a handheld phone（6．2%）． But the most absorbing distraction was texting． Compared to pedestrians who were not distracted, those who were texting took 1．87 seconds longer to cross and were four times more likely to not look where they were going, disobey traffic lights, or cross outside of the crosswalk． While the study did not track injuries related to these trends, previous studies have linked such activities to a higher risk of being injured while crossing the street．
Combined with the rise in the use of mobile devices, especially smart phones, the results raise concerns that multi-tasking while walking may be a rising concern for pedestrians． And that danger may only climb, as the number of wireless devices has already exceeded the population of the United States． Last year, roughly 1,152 people wound up in the emergency room to treat injuries caused by using a cell phone or electronic device, the Consumer Product Safety Commission told the Associated Press in July． Those numbers may be underestimated, however, because patients may not always admit that they were using their phones along with other activities such as walking or driving when they were hurt．
小題1:The scientists did their study at the 20 crossroads in order to _____．

A．a(chǎn)ttract more attention	B．see more injuries
C．record more samples	D．find more pedestrians

小題2:According to the research, while crossing the street the most dangerous activity for apedestrian is _____．

A．talking on a phone	B．texting messages
C．listening to music	D．disobeying traffic lights

小題3:The underlined word "exceeded" is closest in meaning to "____"．

A．gone beyond	B．greatly influenced
C．a(chǎn)ccelerated the increase of	D．drawn the attention of

小題4:Which might be the best title of the passage?

A．Walk and don't Talk

B．Prevention of Distraction

C．Look both ways while crossing the street

D．Cell phones lead to injuries

On Sept. 11, an unseen enemy launched an attack on economic, military and governmental
Landmarks(標志) of the United States.
Beyond the tremendous(巨大的) loss of innocent lives and physical property, the attack was clearly aimed at the ideals of America—our values and the economic system that has made the U.S. economy the envy of the world.
Those responsible for these acts portray(描繪)the United States as the embodiment(化身)of all that is evil
With globalization and the worldwide economy it has spawned. They use the failures of globalization as an excuse to exploit their millions of constituents in the underdeveloped world.
Sometime soon, the U.S. military will strike back against those who it is determined have committed these acts. A military response is appropriate – some would say overdue(期待已久). But even if the military objective is achieved, that alone will not get to the heart of the matter.
It is crucial that the U.S. economy return to full speed ahead and continue to be the driving force behind expansion of the global economy.
Globalization, or at least the present phase of it, generally is viewed as having started with the end of the Cold War in 1989. And for all its shortcomings, the free flow of goods, services, capital and labor across the borders of the world’s trading nations — the process that has come to be called globalization—still offers the best chance to fulfill the dreams of so many of the world’s poor.
小題1:The attack on Sept. 11 caused _____.

A．loss to both the military forces and the ordinary citizens in the U.S.

B．a(chǎn) large variety of losses among the American people

C．greater loss to the American government than the citizens

D．less loss in the economy of the U.S. than the American ideals

小題2:The unseen enemy launched the attack because ________.

A．some people were jealous of the richness of the United States

B．the development of globalization frightened those who were conservative

C．everything evil might be thought to have something to do with the U.S.

D．the United States was considered the most evil country all over the world

小題3:According to the writer, a military response ________.

A．will be successful very soon

B．cannot make any sense to the matter

C．is really hard to some extent

D．will prove justifiable and necessary

小題4:What benefit will the globalization be of?

A．It will bring the expansion of the world’s economy.

B．The poor will become rich overnight if it is realized.

C．Nations will be too friendly to start a war against each other.

D．The borders between the nations will be abandoned soon.

小題5:What does the passage mainly talk about?

A．Economical factors are of great importance in international affairs.

B．The event on Sept. 11 has slowed down the process of globalization.

C．Military forces are necessary in the course of the development of economy.

D．The progress of globalization depends on the recovery of American economy.

Text messaging, or simply “texting”, with allows people to send and receive messages on mobile phones, becomes very popular today.
The advantages of texting are obvious. Texting helps to save money. If you have a few words to greet your families and friends on their birthdays or on some important festivals, sending messages can be cheaper than phone calling. Texting helps to save time. Even if you want to send a message to 100 people, you can do it one second. Texting helps you to “talk” to someone when he is too busy to answer the phone. Texting can also help you to “talk” to someone secretly if you don’t want others to hear what you are talking on the phone. These advantages are so amazing that many people are crazy about it. They hold mobile phones in hands all day long, send dozens of messages each day, and even text while driving or walking.
However, texting has its disadvantages. Junk messages may come into your mobile phone box now and then. When your phone box gets too full, you can’t receive any more messages. You may therefore miss some important information.
What’s more, if you don’t do texting properly, for example texting while driving or walking, it can be dangerous. It can cause injuries and even death. It was reported that about 6,000 people were killed and half a million were injured for this reason each year. In Fort Lee, a small town in New Jersey, USA, three people died because they walked into traffic while texting in 2011. Two researchers at Stony Brook University, New York found that texters are 60% more probably to have an accident than others. When people are texting, they don’t notice other people or things around them. To reduce traffic accidents, all drivers of the UN are now not allowed to text while driving. About 32 countries have passed laws restricting the use of mobile phones while driving.
Texting is a wonderful way of communication. However, only when we use it properly, can we fully enjoy the fun it brings.
小題1:How many advantages of texting are mentioned in the passage?

A．Two.

B．Three.

C．Four.

D．Five.

小題2:What did the researchers at Stony Brook University find?

A．Texters are easier to have an accident.

B．Texting is a good way of communication.

C．6,000 people were killed and injured.

D．Many people text to greet families and friends.

小題3:The underlined word restricting probably means _________.

A．not telling

B．not allowing

C．enjoying

D．making

小題4:This passage is written to tell us that __________.

A．we should do less texting

B．texting has many advantages

C．texting is better than phone calling

D．we should do texting properly

 Why Doesn’t Anybody Copy Apple?
Apple’s products are the envy of the world. They have been spectacularly successful and are widely imitated, if not copied. The minute Apple crystallizes a product, everyone knows how to compete. This idea that the basis of competition is set by Apple and then the race is on to climb the path of improvement is unquestionable. When Apple releases a product that defines a category or dramatically changes the structure of an industry, it becomes obvious what needs to be built. But what I wonder is why everyone wants to copy Apple’s products but nobody wants to copy being Apple?
I can think of two reasons. Firstly, Apple is not worth copying because it’s not successful; secondly, Apple’s success cannot be copied because it is a magical process.
There is a great deal of evidence for the first hypothesis. The idea of Apple being successful is not something reflected in its stock price. Being valued lower than the average company in the S&P（標準普爾）500 indicates that to whatever degree Apple was successful in the past, it’s not seen by the vast majority of observers as successful in the future. Why should one bother copying Apple if it results in being punished with a low valuation? If one works really hard at innovation and then that innovation becomes commoditized（商品化）very quickly, why should one bother?
When innovation practitioners are asked what makes Apple successful,the answers regarding the cause of this success border on the mythical.The climax of this hypothesis is the “chief-sorcerer”theory of success which places one magician,like Steve Jobs,in charge of casting all the right spells（符咒）
What about Apple’s own opinion of what makes it tick? Tim Cook refers to a great team and integration of hardware, software and services as unique Apple advantages. It’s a better explanation. Integration is something that can take a long time, but it is possible with great effort. A few companies are starting to make moves in that direction, but efforts are half-hearted. There is no “move the Earth” panic to become an integrated company from Samsung, Google or Microsoft.
My own suspicion is that Apple is more aware of what makes it special than it lets out. However, as Tim points out, it’s not a formula. It’s complex, it’s subtle, but it’s not magic. It’s a process that requires a degree of faith and courage.
小題1:When a new product of Apple comes out, often it ______.

A．starts a revolution of an industry

B．ruins an industry dramatically

C．puts itself in an unbeatable position

D．is soon overtaken by imitated products

小題2:According to the passage, other companies don’t “copy being Apple” because ______.

A．Apple is not a successful company

B．they have no access to relevant resources

C．it’s hard to find a magician like Steve Jobs

D．being Apple takes more than time and efforts

小題3:We can infer from Para.5 that ______.

A．other companies are dedicated to integration

B．Apple itself is fully aware of its unique advantages

C．Apple will hold the leading position in this industry

D．other companies don’t have a great team as Apple does

小題4:What does the author think of Tim Cook’s statement?

A．Doubtful	B．Acceptable
C．Unbelievable	D．Disappointing

Kong Zi, also called Confucius (551—479B.C.), and Socrates(蘇格拉底) (469—399 B.C.) lived only a hundred years apart, and during their lifetimes there was no contact between China and Greece, but it is interesting to look at how the world that each of these great philosophers came from shaped their ideas, and how these ideas in turn, shaped their societies.
Neither philosopher lived in times of peace, though there were more wars in Greece than in China. The Chinese states were very large and feudal, while the Greek city-states were small and urban. The urban environment in which Socrates lived allowed him to be more radical (激進的) than Confucius. Unlike Confucius, Socrates was not asked by rulers how to govern effectively. Thus, Socrates was able to be more idealistic, focusing on issues like freedom, and knowledge for its own sake. Confucius, on the other hand, advised those in government service, and many of his students went out to government service.
Confucius suggested the Golden Rule as a principle for the conduct of life: "Do not do to others what you would not want others to do to you." He assumed that all men were equal at birth, though some had more potential than others, and that it was knowledge that set men apart. Socrates focused on the individual, and thought that the greatest purpose of man was to seek wisdom. He believed that the superior class should rule the inferior (下層的) classes.
For Socrates, the family was of no importance, and the community of little concern. For Confucius, however, the family was the centre of the society, with family relations considered much more important than political relations.
Both men are respected much more today than they were in their lifetimes.
小題1:Which of the following is TURE according to the first paragraph?

A．Socrates and Confucius had much in common

B．Confucius had much influence on Socrates’ ideas.

C．The societies were influenced by the philosophers’ ideas.

D．There were cultural exchanges between China and Greece.

小題2:Socrates shared with Confucius the idea that ________.
A. all men were equal when they were born
B. the lower classed should be ruled by the upper class
C. the purpose of man was to seek freedom and wisdom
小題3:What made some people different from others according to Confucius?

A．Family.

B．Potential.

C．Knowledge.

D．Community.

小題4:This passage is organized in the pattern of ________.

A．time and events	B．comparison and contrast
C．cause and effect	D．definition and classification

You may not pay much attention to your daily elevator ride. Many of us use a lift several times during the day without really thinking about it. But Lee Gray, PhD, of the University of North Carolina, US, has made it his business to examine this overlooked form of public transport. He is known as the “Elevator Guy”.
“The lift becomes this interesting social space where etiquette (禮儀) is sort of odd (奇怪的),” Gray told the BBC. “They [elevators] are socially very interesting but often very awkward places.”
We walk in and usually turn around to face the door. If someone else comes in, we may have to move. And here, according to Gray, liftusers unthinkingly go through a set pattern of movements. He told the BBC what he had observed.
He explained that when you are the only one inside a lift, you can do whatever you want – it’s your own little box.
If there are two of you, you go into different corners, standing diagonally (對角線地) across from each other to create distance.
When a third person enters, you will unconsciously form a triangle. And when there is a fourth person it becomes a square, with someone in every corner. A fifth person is probably going to have to stand in the middle.
New entrants to the lift will need to size up the situation when the doors slide open and then act decisively. Once in, for most people the rule is simple – look down, or look at your phone.
Why are we so awkward in lifts?
“You don’t have enough space,” Professor Babette Renneberg, a clinical psychologist at the  Free University of Berlin, told the BBC. “Usually when we meet other people we have about an arm’s length of distance between us. And that’s not possible in most elevators.”
In such a small, enclosed space it becomes very important to act in a way that cannot be construed (理解) as threatening or odd. “The easiest way to do this is to avoid eye contact,” she said.
小題1:The main purpose of the article is to _____.

A．remind us to enjoy ourselves in the elevator

B．tell us some unwritten rules of elevator etiquette

C．share an interesting but awkward elevator ride

D．a(chǎn)nalyze what makes people feel awkward in an elevator

小題2:According to Gray, when people enter an elevator, they usually _____.

A．turn around and greet one another

B．look around or examine their phone

C．make eye contact with those in the elevator

D．try to keep a distance from other people

小題3:Which of the following describes how people usually stand when there are at least two people in an elevator?

小題4:The underlined phrase “size up” in Paragraph 7 is closest in meaning to _____.

A．judge

B．ignore

C．put up with

D．make the best of

小題5:According to the article, people feel awkward in lifts because of _____.

A．someone’s odd behaviors

B．the lack of space

C．their unfamiliarity with one another

D．their eye contact with one another